1. Field of the Invention
The instant invention is related to the field of glide boards. It is especially related to a board intended to be used for snowboarding.
2. Description of Background and Relevant Information
A user steers a board intended for snowboarding, or a snowboard, with both legs that are retained on the board in a substantially transverse direction with respect to the length of the board.
The user, or rider, must be able to control his/her path, especially in extreme situations, such as in turns or prior to jumps, which require a substantial support in the area of the contact lines of the board on the snow.
In order to do this, it is necessary that the board be relatively flexible in its lengthwise direction, and relatively stiff in the direction of its width. Longitudinal bending flexibility along a substantially transverse axis allows for a good control of the trajectory during turns. Transverse stiffness along a longitudinal axis allows for the transmission of the steering forces towards the ends of the board, and avoids the transverse bending of the board in case it comes into abrupt contact with bumps on the terrain.
Prior art documents have disclosed numerous boards having a variety of structures in order to fulfill these criteria.
In particular, the French document FR 2 703 257 B1 discloses a board comprising a central platform that is extended in the direction of the tip and tail by the creation of ribs. The platform is located in the middle sole zone and receives bindings enabling the user to be retained thereupon.
However, the board described in the French document FR 2 703 257 B1 has a certain number of disadvantages.
Firstly, the board is stiff in its lengthwise direction due to the presence of the platform, and thus does not enable good steering control while talking curves.
Secondly, in the area of the middle sole, the board displays a substantial thickness over its entire width, which provides it with substantial torsional resistance in this area with respect to the other parts of the board. As a result, the ends of the board get more deformed than the middle sole, and control of the path or trajectory prior to jumping is not appropriate.
The platform extends beyond the middle sole towards the tip and tail, thus substantially increasing the mass of the board, and this negatively impacts ease of steering and responsiveness.
The structure of the board is such that the user must keep his/her feet on the platform, whose function is to increase the stiffness of the board, which reduces the amplitude of the sensations perceived by the rider. Once again, steering becomes less precise.